Manteca Police arrest 4 for gun violations

An alert off-duty Manteca Police officer on Saturday led to the arrest of four gang associates on weapons charges.

The off-duty officer was in Elite Arms on South Main Street when he observed suspicious subjects in the store asking about ammunition. The officer contacted patrol officers and directed them toward the vehicle the subjects were seen leaving in. The vehicle was located in the Wal-Mart parking lot and four subjects were detained by patrol.

A consent search of the vehicle yielded two handguns (Glock 30 .45 caliber and a Ruger .357 revolver) and two shotguns (a 410 and a 12 gauge). The 410 shotgun and the revolver were loaded. In addition, the revolver was reported stolen through Stockton Police in May of 2012.

All four subjects were arrested. The gang unit was contacted and responded to assist with the investigation.

Ultimately, the Glock was registered to the driver, but was not properly secured in the vehicle. One of the subjects readily claimed possession of the stolen Ruger and another subject claimed ownership of the two shotguns.

All four subjects admitted being Sureno associates, but none of them admitted full membership. Further investigation is required to confirm their membership status.

The subject with the revolver, Ernest Mejia, 21, of Tracy was a prohibited person due to a previous firearm conviction. He was later transported to the County Jail.

The other three subjects in the vehicle had no prior convictions that would prevent them from possessing firearms. They were cited for misdemeanor firearm violations and were released. Jorge Covarrubias, 21, of French Camp was cited for possession of a loaded concealed firearm in a vehicle and carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle. Both Daniel Alejandre, 18, of Tracy, and Arturo Hernandez, 19, of Tracy were cited for carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle.